The Ohio Sci-Fi and Horror Marathons
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The Witch
http://www.scifimarathon.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=1952		 Page 1 of 1
Author:  scottcoz [ Fri Feb 19, 2016 4:46 am ]
Post subject:  The Witch
Just saw it - loved it! Although, not as much as It Follows, but it's one of those type of horror films... maybe The Babadook is a better comparison. If you hated both of those films, I wouldn't recommend it. But, if you liked them... this was also paced very slowly, mostly about psychological horror, no shock scares, very little blood.

I have a little nitpick about the ending, but don't want to say it, until more people have had a chance to see it. Overall, though, it kept me engaged right up until the very end.
Author:  Worldsfinest [ Fri Feb 19, 2016 11:19 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Witch
Just realized that there's "Witch" and "The Witch"...really confused me!

Looking forward to seeing both of these, though.
Author:  scottcoz [ Sat Feb 20, 2016 3:14 am ]
Post subject:  Re: The Witch
Oops - thanks for the catch, Worldsfinest! I didn't even realize there was a "The" in there. Edited the thread topic accordingly.

Anyway - also, a clarification...
My nitpick about the ending isn't the same as what I'm seeing in reviews. I was just fine with the overall theme and plot of the ending. It was a little bit of dialogue right before that last scene, which struck me as really out of place. Given that the whole thing did such a good job of depicting the language of the period, there was one bit of dialogue there that really seemed like they got it wrong. I'm guessing that, since the director/writer said he got so much of the dialogue from actual documents of the time, and clearly this was one bit of dialogue that he totally had to make up... he just didn't do a convincing job there.

I'd be curious what other people thought.
Author:  IamJacksUserID [ Sat Feb 20, 2016 11:42 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: The Witch
The Witch is a fantastic movie that was nearly ruined not by its own merits, but by the mysteriously unappreciative patrons sitting directly in front and in back of me in the theater.

The only thing I would disagree with is the notion that there is "little blood." This movie has plenty of everything horror fans crave, including blood and "jump scares." The only difference is the execution is so masterful, you don't notice you are being manipulated because every scare is meaningful and not just random filler. There is an unrelenting sense of dread throughout and absolutely zero humor, so if that is not your thing then be warned.

Its kind of a mix of Carpenter's The Thing meets The Crucible meets Kill List meets Ken Russell. On a personal level, it hits almost every single note of what creeps me the hell out in horror: child endangerment, claustrophobic paranoia, and the loss of innocence. An amazing debut for Robert Eggers and I cant wait to see what he does next.

Not sure what the piece of dialogue was that bumped you, though. Nothing stood out to me. Heard tell that the ending was a bit too unambiguous for some, but I didn't have a problem with any of it.
Author:  agentstinky [ Sun Feb 21, 2016 8:39 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: The Witch
scottcoz wrote:
Oops - thanks for the catch, Worldsfinest! I didn't even realize there was a "The" in there. Edited the thread topic accordingly.

Anyway - also, a clarification...
My nitpick about the ending isn't the same as what I'm seeing in reviews. I was just fine with the overall theme and plot of the ending. It was a little bit of dialogue right before that last scene, which struck me as really out of place. Given that the whole thing did such a good job of depicting the language of the period, there was one bit of dialogue there that really seemed like they got it wrong. I'm guessing that, since the director/writer said he got so much of the dialogue from actual documents of the time, and clearly this was one bit of dialogue that he totally had to make up... he just didn't do a convincing job there.

I'd be curious what other people thought.


I think I know what you're talking about (if it's the moment I'm thinking of, it did get a few chuckles in the theater), and I initially thought that as well, but then I thought that it might be one of those things where you'd be surprised to find out it actually was from the time period. Like maybe it actually came from a court testimony from someone claiming to have been in a similar conversation to the one in the film. Obviously I don't know for sure, but it seemed so bizarre that I thought it had to be authentic.

As for the movie, I loved it! I am seeing it being compared a lot to The Babadook and It Follows, and I can see why--psychological horror combined with measured amounts of shock/gore, slower pace, plot ambiguity, more complex female roles and feminist themes, etc. One review I read even speculated that it might grow into a larger overall trend in horror, one the reviewer welcomes more than other recent horror trends like "torture porn" and "found footage." I'm interested to see if that's the case, and if so, whether it will go through the normal pattern of imitators, deconstructions, etc. I think it would be GREAT at Shock Around the Clock, and if it does get booked, I'll definitely watch it again.

The theater where I saw it turned on subtitles for the sometimes hard-to-understand 17th century English; just curious if any other theaters did that and if anyone else who saw it thought they were or weren't necessary.
Author:  MEATFETISH [ Mon Feb 22, 2016 12:11 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: The Witch
agentstinky wrote:
The theater where I saw it turned on subtitles for the sometimes hard-to-understand 17th century English; just curious if any other theaters did that and if anyone else who saw it thought they were or weren't necessary.


I kind of wish the theater I saw it at did that. The dialogue was so difficult to both hear and understand, that I think it helped get the audience to really shut up and pay attention. I really enjoyed it and found a few scenes to be quite uncomfortable to watch.
Author:  scottcoz [ Mon Feb 22, 2016 4:53 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: The Witch
IamJacksUserID wrote:
Not sure what the piece of dialogue was that bumped you, though.


K - here goes... BIG SPOILERS AHEAD:

Spoiler: show
It was when Black Philip asks Thomasin what she wants, and then offers some suggestions, "A nice dress? Do you want to travel the world?" I couldn't help thinking that it didn't sound very authentic to the period, but perhaps more importantly, also didn't really sound convincing, since, clearly, becoming a witch doesn't mean she's going to be wearing nice dresses and going to grand balls - and, she would know that. Seemed to me, what the devil should have promising her were things like freedom, power, to exert her will over her own life and even other people... so, it took me out of the movie a bit.
Author:  agentstinky [ Tue Feb 23, 2016 12:56 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: The Witch
scottcoz wrote:
Spoiler: show
It was when Black Philip asks Thomasin what she wants, and then offers some suggestions, "A nice dress? Do you want to travel the world?" I couldn't help thinking that it didn't sound very authentic to the period, but perhaps more importantly, also didn't really sound convincing, since, clearly, becoming a witch doesn't mean she's going to be wearing nice dresses and going to grand balls - and, she would know that. Seemed to me, what the devil should have promising her were things like freedom, power, to exert her will over her own life and even other people... so, it took me out of the movie a bit.


Spoiler: show
True, but to someone living a hardscrabble, humble religious life in the American colonies, things like a nice dress or seeing the world would have seemed like unimaginable luxuries, and while she was becoming a woman, Thomasin was still a child and these things may have appealed to her more than absolute power. A small silver cup was considered a family heirloom and the only valuable thing the family had, and it was a major point of contention in the family when it went missing. Again, given the note at the end of the movie that some of the dialogue and details came from period sources, this could have been an actual claim by a suspected witch or "witness" to "witchcraft." Maybe a young girl during a witchcraft trial of the time would have claimed that she had signed the devil's book because he promised her luxury things like clothes or travel, not more abstract concepts adults might favor like power.

That being said, I thought the line you were going to mention was "Wouldst thou like to live deliciously?" It makes sense as a devil's promise during a time when no one lived anywhere close to "deliciously," but the wording struck me as kind of bizarre.
Author:  L.A. Connection [ Fri Mar 04, 2016 3:45 am ]
Post subject:  Re: The Witch
I liked the movie. There were all of 7 people in the theater which was disappointing, but, at least the talking and texting was kept to a minimum - save for some ahole's cell phone ringing during the climax of the movie! :evil:

I appreciated the setup, the acting and the mood of the piece. For the most part, it played out more as historical drama than a straight horror movie. And, that's where my problems lie. It seemed as though the movie was constructed around the idea of showing the isolated family drama as a microcosm of the Salem Witch trials. But, the ending goes off into a more blood & thunder direction that I didn't feel quite meshed. It's still a solid effort that deserves much much better than the C minus rating it got on Cinemascore from general audiences.

As to the 'anachronistic' dialogue towards the end? Nah, travelling the world has been a common theme for centuries; Particularly, when you're talking about a person who has been isolated even from her local villages, let alone a big city.
Author:  not worldsfinest [ Mon Mar 07, 2016 4:44 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: The Witch
Very pro The Witch. Thought it was excellent across the board -- production, story, acting. Will one day make a great entry into the Marathon.
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